Coast25 March 2026 - 17:13

Presidential hopeful Eliud Owalo outlines his plan for the Coast region

The region has been a key vote basket for presidential candidates.

by BRIAN OTIENO

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Presidential hopeful Eliud Owalo has said he will secure land rights for Coastal people should he become president.

Speaking during a radio talk show at Bahari FM, Owalo said on Wednesday, the Coast region, with all its resources, especially the mineral deposits that are being discovered, should easily become the heartbeat of the country when it comes to wealth generation.

“This region is the wealthiest but is being dragged down by land issues that subsequent regimes have failed to tackle adequately.

“In my regime, the Coast region will be one of my priorities. My government will resolve the issue of squatters on ancestral land,” Owalo said.

The region has been a key vote basket for presidential candidates but has never got the kick start that it needs majorly due to the complexity of the land question.

Resolving the land question at the Coast in Kenya has been difficult for governments due to a confluence of deep-rooted historical injustices, legal complexities, "absentee landlord" issues, and political manipulation.

The situation is characterized by indigenous communities living as squatters on their ancestral land while wealthy outsiders, often holding titles from the colonial era, claim ownership.

This, Owalo said, will be his priority in his administration.

“When we form government, we will have to take hard decisions together with the Coastal leadership so we can solve these problems in a way that will be amicable,” he said.

Leaders at the Coast, especially those allied to the ruling UDA party, have embarked on a campaign to popularise the Kenya Kwanza regime that has tried to solve some of the issues that have remained neglected for decades.

Led by UDA secretary general Hassan Omar and Sports CS Salim Mvurya, the leaders are keen to ensure the region increases it voter numbers from the current about 1.97 million voters to four million voters by 2027.

The aim is to ensure a landslide victory for Ruto at the Coast.

For instance, Senate Speaker Amason Kingi, who hails from Kilifi county, said there are 500,000 people who have national ID cards but are not registered as voters in Kilifi county alone.

Owalo on Wednesday said the Coast region needs more infrastructural development, industrialization at the source of raw materials, promotion of the blue economy, fixing value chains, and empowering youth through job creation.

This is one of his priorities in his third (economic) liberation agenda for the country.

“My government will upgrade seaports, airports, dams and roads. We will promote the sustainable use of the blue economy, including marine resources and eco-tourism. We will strengthen value chains such as cashew nuts and coconuts, and revitalize tourism,” Owalo, a former ICT CS in the Kenya kwanza regime, said.

He said his economic transformation agenda entails reducing taxes, lowering the public debt burden, and zero tolerance to corruption.

He said his administration will ensure true free primary and day secondary education, free healthcare in public hospitals, and transitioning Kenya into a digital and creative economy.

“We have talents in this country that are not being tapped on to ensure the country’s economy upgrades through sports. We will position the country as a leading sporting nation in Africa,” Owalo said.

He said his administration will entrench constitutionalism anchored on the rule of law so as to do away with abductions and weaponisation of institutions.

INSTANT ANALYSIS:

In a surprising move, Owalo resigned as the deputy chief of staff in charge of delivery and government efficiency in the Office of the President, effective January 11, 2026. He stepped down to focus on his ambition to contest the presidency in Kenya's 2027 general elections.